Ms. Lolo, I'm Ready For My Closeup!

If there were one word I could use to describe my photo session at Lolo’s Boudoir, it would be: baptismal. That may be far too dramatic a term but it really sums up my inspiring photo experience with photographer Lone MØrch Schneider. My 34th birthday was approaching and I wanted to replace the standard feelings of gloom about growing older with a more positive experience. Indulging myself with a sexy and revealing boudoir photo session was the best birthday gift I could give to myself.

In a serendipitous way I happened upon Lolo’s Boudoir website (http://www.lolosboudoir.com/) and instantly knew she was the one. Her photographic style instinctively appealed to me: ethereal but natural, timeless, spontaneous, sensual and revealing yet at times coquettish. I can’t claim to be an expert on the art of photography but I have strong opinions on what I like and don’t like. So many other photo boudoir websites had revealed to be tacky, campy and very artificial. Lolo’s Boudoir has heartfelt style.

Before our session I felt a little self conscious and I had warned Lone that I might prove to be one of her more ‘curvier’ clients and that given the wrong angle I might not be one of her most photogenic! She reassured me through examples from her portfolio she would discover the best I had to give. Lone possesses artistic mindfulness. She kindly encouraged the real me to the surface and helped me uncover the beauty I thought I never possessed. The entire experience was an awakening and rebirth of my sensual spirit.

Lone has the magical ability to transform any environment. We had an outdoors photo shoot where she transformed the forest into a starlet’s dressing room. Lone’s gentle, fun and professional personality allowed me to shed all inhibitions. I spent a cold winter morning frolicking about the forest, playing the role of nymph, drama queen and even bathing beauty as I shed all and luxuriated in the freezing cold stream water. At that moment I felt I had experienced a ‘creative baptism’ of sorts.

Regardless of just whom you have in mind while you’re smiling (or smirking, flirting, luring) for while posing for the camera lens; you should always be posing for yourself. Just you. A photographic experience at Lolo’s Boudoir is all about you. It’s a special time for you to be sensual, carefree, indulgent, sexy and alluring. With a complimentary glass of champagne and a few nibbles of fine chocolate…how could you not be?

Inspiration: Bhutan - Remember

Remember

I remember the sights of Bhutan
Vibrant red poinsettias
Endless green mountainsides
Stair stepped rice terraces
Sacred golden temples and majestic Dzongs
108 white prayer flags scattered on a hill
And homes adorned with bright colorful artwork- Showing the joy and culture of this land.

I remember the sounds of Bhutan.
Quiet, Blessed Quiet.
Roosters crowing at dawn
Schoolchildren yelling “Bye, Bye!”
A Granny calling us to her temple
Chants- which open the heart
And the frantic yet harmonic music
At the Temple of the Divine Madman.

I remember the tastes of Bhutan
Spicy pumpkin curry soup
Nutty, robust red rice
Sweet apples- just picked that morning
Surprise chocolates at Tigers Nest
And mostly- chilies, red fiery chilies
Hot, hot, hot.

I remember the smells of Bhutan
Pure, fresh air
Incense in the Temples
Smoky fires ready to make tea
Sweet wildflowers sprinkled along our path
And the pungent smell of chilies
Baking on the hot tin roofs.

But Mostly…
I remember the people of Bhutan
The sweetness of the young monks
The joy in the children’s faces
The smiles and helping hands from Ongdi, Tsetn and Ugen
Sangay’s great love and knowledge of his country.
And my Bhutanese Guardian Angel- Kinley.
Showing me the heart and soul of this land
While making me feel safe every step of the way.

I remember Bhutan
With gratitude and joy.

Poet: S. Enderle

Tanzania - Happy Birthday Charles Darwin

I’m not one to celebrate birthdays, especially as I get older but I overheard on the national news yesterday that Wednesday, February 12th, is Charles Darwin’s birthday. We all know Darwin and let’s thank him on his special day for helping spur the debate of evolution versus creation which rages on to this day. Thank you Charlie (wink wink!). For those of you who know me well you know I have a propensity to learn towards the theory of evolution. To me, it makes absolute sense and when you consider the common thread that is shared through all of human life (despite race, color, creed, religion, joys and struggles), the amazing diversity and complexity of animal and plant life, the concept of how the continents shifted, how man and woman evolved from apes out of the middle of Africa based on archeological findings; it just all makes terrible sense to me. However, I admit I struggled with science in high school and college bigtime so, don’t consider me an expert.

Past the Serengeti in East Tanzania in to the Great Rift Valley lies the Olduvai Gorge, or more commonly referred to as 'The Cradle of Mankind.' Here lies one of the most important prehistoric sites in the world and is instrumental in understanding the theory of human evolution as well. Fossil remains of human beings, their families, footprints and artifacts were found here dating back more than 2.5 million years ago. It is incredibly dry and arid there, the wind sweeps up so swift and powerfully from the gorge you can barely keep your hat on. Overlooking the gorge from up top there was dead silence except for the whistling the wind made as it passed up and across the dusty plateau. It was a slightly eerie feeling, not in a bad way, but deeply mysterious. To stand there and imagine what life must have been like for our very earliest ancestors: how did they walk? Where did they find food, water or shelter? Why here in this barren landscape and why not leave? Leave they did. And here we are.

I just don’t have the answers. I don’t know and I'm pretty A-OK without knowing. There are times when I delve deep down inside and ponder the truly big questions in life; how did we get here? why are we here? more so why the Hell am I here? what happens after we die? And when it all gets too much I head out shopping and maybe pick up a handbag, or enjoy a couple glasses of Shiraz wine with a girlfriend or the best remedy of all, I watch endless reruns of Larry David’s ‘Curb Your Enthusiasm.’

Most of you will know Larry David as the co-producer (i.e.: comic genius) behind Seinfeld and if you don’t know Seinfeld then, according to Charles Darwin’s Survival of the Fittest theory, you might not be the crunchiest carrot in the bunch. Hopefully your genes will not propagate into the future. Larry has covered every facet of the human struggle: irony, perversity, shame, isolation, idiocy, nothingness, hypocrisy, curiosity, apathy. So, if laughter is the path to redemption then through the grace of Larry, I think I might be saved.

Again, standing there on top of the gorge I laid eyes on three little boys playing and dashing down the valley, hiding behind huge rocks, pouncing down the gritty, dusty, dirt barely escaping a tumbling fall all the way down. They wore the traditional Maasai brightly colored red and/or purple robes and no shoes for them (how brave!). They were laughing out loud, having a terrible amount of fun as they chased after each other and soon they disappeared into the valley somewhere out of my eyesight. Really, I sure don’t have answers although I do have opinions and regardless of where you stand on the issue of evolution versus creation I’d say that laughter is a blessing.

Serengeti, Tanzania - The Thrill and the Skill of the Kill

Story in progress...please stay tuned.

Photo: Serengeti National Park, Tanzania

Take Action: Congolese Women, Raped and Refugees

I am not ashamed to say that when I watched Hotel Rhwanda a few years ago I was mortified and bawled more than halfway through the movie. I am ashamed to say that, I had NO clue of the highly disturbing conflict that took place a decade ago. For as much as I adore the Clintons, why did the U.S. turn a blind eye to that disaster?

As I speak, in the Democratic Republic of Congo, more than 5.4 million people have died in the last ten years in two civil wars. Genocide is happening in Darfur. More horrifying is that women (children and the elderly) have been brutally raped with bayonnets and guns...repeatedly and sometimes fatally. It's escalated from war crimes to regular street crime. It can happen to any woman, anywhere at anytime. Often the outcome of rape is pregnancy and with the stain of rape and illegitimacy, women are shunned by their own family, villagers and even husbands, asked to leave and left with nothing.

UNICEF ambassador Dayle Haddon posed the question "How do you destroy a community...by destroying its women. But the Congolese women are fighting back. They have created a women's tribunal to report to the government and the world what has happened: they're building communities where women can protect themselves and teach each other skills and literacy."

Visit http://www.raisehopeforcongo.org/ where you can register for updates and/or sign a petition demanding President Obama pressure Congo's leaders into stopping the violence.

Source: Marie Claire, March 2009

Cuanto Cuesta?: Venice - Masquerade! Paper Faces on Parade...

*'Hide your face so the world will never find you!'

Established in 1984 by artist Antonia Sautter, Il Sole e la Luna/Max Art Shop (http://www.ballodeldoge.com/negozi%20uk.swf) is a genuine Venetian mask shop and a gem to find. What I confess is, I happened upon it by accident. Lost, disoriented or map dyslexic it doesn't matter, Venice is a difficult island to navigate. Better to toss that map and will yourself to get lost; you can find real treasures that way. I discovered Max Art Shop after sheer navigation exhuastion and I've returned twice since then with two exotic and memorable treasures.

Certainly for anyone who visits Venice the island is overburdened with, well, tacky souvenir masks, but where do you find a mask with genuine, artistic authenticity? One that you can hide your identity behind? Free to abandon all social mores and live out your innermost, desiring fantasies? Ok...stop! I'm going beyond another realm now (regains her composure). Max Art Shop is a meeting point of the finest Venetian mask artisans in Venice. More to offer are marionettes, dolls, exclusive fabrics and amazing costumes to make you stand out amongst the Carnivale crowds and precious art objects all reflective of the flavor of the Venice of Old.

'Masquerade!
Stop and stare at the sea of smiles around you!'

Address: Frezzeria S. Marco, 1503 – Venezia
Tel & Fax: +39-041-5287-543
email: martshop@tin.it

*Lyrics: Phantom of the Opera by Andrew Lloyd Webber

Photo: Carnivale Venice 2004, Italy

New Zealand - Lost in Translation

Story in development...stay tuned.

Photo: North Island, New Zealand

Bali, Indonesia - Cleanliness, Purity, Sanity is Next to Godliness

story in development...stay tuned
















Photo: Bali, Indonesia

Kenya - Guess What? Americans are Likeable Again!

Although it wasn't that long ago (2007) that I was posed next to a picture of Hillary Clinton in a hotel in Lima, Peru. The receptionist giggled as she took my picture. In my usual handicapped Spanish I tried to communicate "This is going to be the next Presidente of the Estados Unidos." Tapping my finger on the picture. Presidente=President, Estados Unidos= United States. The hotel staff gently smiled as well as I anticipating how exciting it would be to have such an enigmatic woman in the White House, the leader of the free world.

Catch up a year and so later, as we all know, we elected our first African American president, Barack Obama. Admittedly my hopes were dashed (I even volunteered in San Francisco for the Hillary Clinton campaign) yet I hold no disappointment, rather, hope and huge expectations for our nation's future. Mostly, that people of all nations around the world return to the once high level of admiration and respect that they once held for all Americans.

I always look forward to meeting people from different cultures and have tried to hold an open mind that regardless of their nation's political leaders and structures; they are just like me. They work to pay the bills, they care for friends and family and wouldn't mind once in a while a little bit of fun to come along the way.

In my early experiences backpacking Europe, young Americans would sew a Canadian flag patch on their packs as to not immediately be targeted as American. As we moved through the 8 years of the Bush administration, attempts to disguise one's nationality became more savvy. I have always been proud to be an American and I know in my heart where our finer qualities lie; we are friendly, outgoing, funny, curious and kind. In the past few years, upon meeting new travelers the immediate question asked is "Where are you from?"

"America" I'd say.

"Ohhh....(hiss, hiss)George Bush!" in a tone of disdain.

I never got in a conflict of the political kind with anyone and the people I've met and traveled with have shown me the same respect. Best to talk about fine wine and landscapes than hapless leaders. Although, on occassion I have fibbed just to not get in to it. I've been everything from Swedish to German. In India I bonded with an older, retired couple from the middle of England. I found it really difficult to bargain with souvenier vendors. I couldn't ever get them to knock down pennies and I suspected the spectacle of a young, blonde, woman traveling on her own was tarnishable if not loose in thier terms. The English husband kindly suggested that while we shopped together, perhaps I should pretend that I am their daughter. I giggled at the opportunity to dust off my English accent learned from long ago drama days. At one vendor stand, I was asked "Where are you from?"

In my posh English accent I spoke "Ohhh I'm from the middle of England and this is me Mum and me Dad."

"Ohhh, how lovely to see a family traveling together," and I got the price of a delicately hand painted wooden box knocked off over 30%.

As of November 4th, 2008, Americans are likeable again. We are loved, admired, looked up to and the world danced in the streets on that night. Recently, I traveled to Kenya and Tanzania in Africa with my mother. After a harrowing journey, one that summed up over 35 hours, it goes without saying that our nerves about stepping foot on the dark continent and exhaustion made us feel vulnerable muche less exhausted. Upon meeting our first guide at the international airport in Nairobi, Kenya it was after initial greetings that he smiled and said "Ahhh, Obama..." moving their heads up and down in a gesture of yes and smiling. Each guide from there on and many people we met along the way smiled and spoke kindly "Ahhh...Obama (moving their heads up and down in a gesture of yes and smiling!). Things are going to be good from now on!"

I sincerely hope so.

Photo: En route from Nairobi, Kenya to Arush, Tanzania

Serengeti, Tanzania - Symphony In Flea Major

story in development...stay tuned.

Photo: Serengeti National Park, Tanzania

Cuanto Cuesta?: Zanzibar, Magical Mashika

story in development...stay tuned.

Credit: http://www.doreenmashika.com/

Photo: Stonetown, Zanzibar, Tanzania

Vacaciones? Serengeti, Tanzania

Why Did You Go? Call it the mother/daughter version of 'The Bucket List' and to experience Africa's wildlife up close and in person vs. on the Discovery Channel!

What Should I Not Miss? The annual migration of thousands of wildebeast from Kenya to the Serengeti and the interplay (and preying) of animals involved in this movement.

What Should I Skip Out On? Weighing yourself down by packing too much, a backpack is enough. You're gauranteed dirt, dust & sweat! So just deal with it, the locals do!

What's The Coolest Souvenier You Brought Back? A designer bag by Doreen Mashika (http://www.doreenmashika.com/), luxury Italian leathers mixed with local, tribal and eco-friendly fabrics. African style couture!

What Should I Splurge On? A meal at the Arusha Coffee Lodge Resort. Dine amongst the plantations indulging in far from home delights like coffee grind glazed steak.

What Should You Absolutely Pack? A cheat sheet for the musical and bouncy Swahili language. Locals speak English well but a friendly "Jambo Rafiki" (hello friend) gaurantees a wide smile in return

Photo: Serengeti National Park, Tanzania

TIPS: Airline Tickets What Day of the Week to get Great Deals

Do your research and if possible, purchase your airline tickets on a Wednesday. This is not a gaurantee, however, it is a typical scenario. An airline announces a fare sale on a Monday or Tuesday and other airlines match the price or undercut it. On Wednesday, the fare wars are on high alert, alas, by Thursday, all the great fares are GONE. Keep in mind Saturday is the WORST day to buy a ticket. Airlines usually raise their prices on a Friday night to see if other airlines follow,if not, then fares may go down on a Monday.

Photo: Flying over the Andes, Peru

Inspiration: Be Creative and Illustrate Your Journey

"Journeys, like artists, are born and not made. A thousand differing circumstances contribute to them, a few of them willed or determined by the will."

Lawrence Durrell

Photo: San Gimignano, Italy

Inspiration: The Greatest Love Affair is to Move

"I travel for travel's sake. The great affair is to move."

Robert Louis Stevenson

Photo: Lake Titicaca, Peru

Inspiration: The Great Debate, the Journey vs. Arrival

"The journey, not the arrival, matters."

T. S. Elliot

Photo: Venice, Italy

Inspiration: This Is What Makes Travel Fascinating

"All journeys have secret destinations of which the traveler is unaware."

Martin Buber

Photo: Cusco, Peru

Inspiration: Journeys End in Lovers Meeting

"Journey's end in lovers meeting."

William Shakespeare

Photo: Agra, India

Inspiration: The Highest Form of Recreation: Wake Up!

"We travel to wake up. Life is swift and hazy. We are habitual creatures, following mildly comfortable ruts. As Miguel de Unamuno said, “To fall into a habit is to cease to be.” The great religions, the poets, the philosophers, the guy at the corner store (if he stops to think about it) well tell us that we live most of our lives in a sleepy mist. Travel, like the best friend we’ll ever have, gives us a little slap, “Wake up! Be.”

We travel because it’s the highest form of re-creation. Every time we step out of life’s routine we have the chance, the challenge to re-create ourselves anew. To decide who we are, what we like, what we can’t stand, what we crave, what brings us joy, what repels and attracts us. We always have this fundamental chance, but we don’t usually grasp it. The good traveler, as opposed to the traveler who’s just getting cartered around, learns that this old personality is marvelously flexible, fantastically adaptable, fare more capacious than he ever thought. That we always have the power to choose, who we are, to re-create ourselves as we see fit. "

Credit: Geographic Expeditions, San Francisco

Photo: Udaipur, India

Inspiration: We Travel Because People Everywhere Are Wonderful? Of Course Not!

“We travel because people everywhere are wonderful. Always? Of course not. But ask the alert traveler, and she will tell you: as a species, humans are worth the effort of getting to know. As the old Moorish proverb says, “he who does not travel does not know the value of men.”

What about the moments of human exchange? The cab driver in Cairo who grandly, quietly refused payment. That man in Kashgar who took you home to meet the folks. The old fellow you played chess with in Tehran. The ladies in a mountain village who fed you dates and gossiped about men and painted your feet in the local style. The rough truck driver who cradled you like a baby when you had food poisoning in Shigatse. the forbidding looking Pthan man in Peshawar (yes, Peshawar) who suddenly smiled and said, “Welcome to my country, dear sir.”

Again and again, the human encounters are what we remember; they are balm to our souls. If travel teaches us nothing, it teaches us that human are lovely creatures. And we travel because, as an old Zen koan puts, “the whole world is medicine.” Medicine freely offered, medicine we need and have a right to. Medicine that cures us of alienation and the bondage of self-obsession. Medicine that helps us become whole and vibrant , that allows us to see the whole and vibrant world.”

Credit: Geographic Expeditions, San Francisco

Photo: Jaisalmer, India

Inspiration: It's not about landscapes, it's about having new eyes

"We travel because we're natural born sensualists. Sure, we're smack-dab in a miraculously rich sensory environment without even leaving home. The local franchise coffee dispensary, if we stop fidgeting long enough to let it flow in, is a teeming universe of sense-delights. Problem is, we don't usually notice through the the habit-mist. But we do notice this incredible, unceasing flood to our senses when we travel. Sights, sounds and -probably the least honored (because they're so seemingly vestigial)--the smells, sunrise in the Himalaya. The sugs of Istanbul. Wild horses galloping across the plains of Patagonia. Dinner in Tuscany. There is no end to it.

We travel, as Chesterton said "not so set foot on foreign land (but to) set foot on one's own country as foreign land." That is, we travel to understand our normal life and land better. To appreciate them more to mine them for their joy and, yes, their unending exoticism. To look beyond what someone recently called "the narcissicism of the unspoiled place, " which contains within it the dull, life-shunning notion that the very place we live in is in somehow "spoiled." Proust said it too: "The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeing new landscapes, but in having new eyes." Travel gives us new eyes. It makes the old brand new."

Credit: Geographic Expeditions, San Francisco, California

Photo: Venice, Italy